The Valparaiso University women’s tennis team has been selected to finish fourth of seven in the Missouri Valley Conference Preseason Poll, which was released by the league office on Wednesday.

The Beacons enjoyed a successful fall season highlighted by Olivia Czerwonka (Kenosha, Wis. / Saint Joseph Catholic Academy) winning the Flight 2 Singles crown at the MVC Individual Championships and Olivia teaming up with her older sister Claire Czerwonka (Kenosha, Wis. / Saint Joseph Catholic Academy) to take the Flight 1 Doubles title.

The team will begin the spring semester on Saturday, Jan. 15 at 2 p.m. vs. IUPUI at The Courts of Northwest Indiana, starting a string of three straight home dates to begin the dual slate. Last season, Valpo achieved the program’s highest win total since 2007.

The fourth-place preseason projection is Valpo’s highest since 2007, the team’s final season in the Mid-Continent Conference. Valpo jumped two spots from last year’s preseason poll, finishing ahead of Stony Brook and Missouri State as well as UNI. Illinois State is the preseason favorite to win the league, followed by Drake and Bradley.

All seven Valpo players won four or more singles matches during the fall slate, which saw Valpo accumulate a winning mark of 41-40 in singles play. Olivia’s team-high 11 triumphs (against just two losses) were followed by Amanda Tabanera’s (Valencia, Calif. / Valencia) seven fall singles successes, while Demi Jhaveri (Westlake, Ohio / Westlake) boasted six. Olivia and Claire paced the squad with seven fall doubles victories as a tandem.